[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 138 (Thursday, July 18, 2024)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 58303-58304]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-15843]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION

16 CFR Part 1215

[Docket No. CPSC-2009-0064]


Notice of Availability and Request for Comment: Revision to the 
Voluntary Standard for Infant Bath Seats

AGENCY: Consumer Product Safety Commission.

ACTION: Notice of availability and request for comment.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission's (Commission or 
CPSC) mandatory rule, Safety Standard for Infant Bath Seats, 
incorporates by reference ASTM F1967-19, Standard Consumer Safety 
Specification for Infant Bath Seats. ASTM notified the Commission that 
it has revised this incorporated voluntary standard. CPSC seeks comment 
on whether the revision improves the safety of infant bath seats.

DATES: Comments must be received by August 1, 2024.

ADDRESSES: You can submit comments, identified by Docket No. CPSC-2009-
0064, by any of the following methods:
    Electronic Submissions: Submit electronic comments to the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal at: https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 
instructions for submitting comments. Do not submit through this 
website: confidential business information, trade secret information, 
or other sensitive or protected information that you do not want to be 
available to the public. CPSC typically does not accept comments 
submitted by email, except as described below.
    Mail/Hand Delivery/Courier/Confidential Written Submissions: CPSC 
encourages you to submit electronic comments by using the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal. You may, however, submit comments by mail, hand 
delivery, or courier to: Office of the Secretary, Consumer Product 
Safety Commission, 4330 East West Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814; 
telephone: (301) 504-7479. If you wish to submit confidential business 
information, trade secret information, or other sensitive or protected 
information that you do not want to be available to the public, you may 
submit such comments by mail, hand delivery, or courier, or you may 
email them to: [email protected].
    Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name and 
docket number. CPSC may post all comments without change, including any 
personal identifiers, contact information, or other personal 
information provided, to: https://www.regulations.gov. Do not submit to 
this website: confidential business information, trade secret 
information, or other sensitive or protected information that you do 
not want to be available to the public. If you wish to submit such 
information, please submit it according to the instructions for mail/
hand delivery/courier/confidential written submissions.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to: https://www.regulations.gov, and insert the 
docket number, CPSC-2009-0064, into the ``Search'' box, and follow the 
prompts.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Julia Kerns, Directorate for 
Engineering Sciences, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, 5 
Research Place, Rockville, MD 20850; telephone: (301) 987-2548; email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 104(b) of the Consumer Product 
Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (CPSIA) requires the Commission to adopt 
mandatory standards for durable infant or toddler products. 15 U.S.C. 
2056a(b)(1). Mandatory standards must be ``substantially the same as'' 
voluntary standards, or they may be ``more stringent'' than the 
applicable voluntary standards, if the Commission determines that more 
stringent requirements would further reduce the risk of injury 
associated with the products. Id. Mandatory standards may be based, in 
whole or in part, on a voluntary standard.
    Section 104(b)(4)(B) of the CPSIA specifies the process for when a 
voluntary standards organization revises a standard that the Commission 
incorporated by reference under section 104(b)(1). First, the voluntary 
standards organization must notify the Commission of the revision. Once 
the Commission receives this notification, the Commission may reject or 
accept the revised standard. To reject a revised standard, the 
Commission must notify the voluntary standards organization

[[Page 58304]]

within 90 days of receiving the notice that it has determined that the 
revised standard does not improve the safety of the consumer product 
and that it is retaining the existing standard. If the Commission does 
not take this action, the revised voluntary standard will be considered 
a consumer product safety standard issued under section 9 of the 
Consumer Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 2058), effective 180 days after 
the Commission received notification of the revision (or a later date 
specified by the Commission in the Federal Register). 15 U.S.C. 
2056a(b)(4)(B).
    In 2010, the Commission adopted a mandatory rule for infant bath 
seats under section 104(b)(1) of the CPSIA, which was codified in 16 
CFR part 1215. The rule incorporated by reference ASTM F1967-08a, 
Standard Consumer Safety Specification for Infant Bath Seats, with 
modifications to make the standard more stringent. 75 FR 31691 (June 4, 
2010). At the time the Commission published the final rule, ASTM F1967-
08a was the current version of the voluntary standard. ASTM 
subsequently revised the voluntary standard five times. ASTM F1967 
applies to infant bath seats, which it describes as products used in a 
bathtub, sink, or similar bathing enclosure and that provide support, 
at a minimum, to the front and back of a seated infant during bathing 
by a caregiver. The ASTM standard includes performance requirements, 
test methods, and labeling requirements to address hazards to infants 
associated with infant bath seats. After the Commission adopted the 
mandatory standard in 2010, the Commission updated the standard in 
2012, 2013, and 2019 and the mandatory standard currently incorporates 
by reference ASTM F1967-19. 84 FR 49435 (September 20, 2019).
    On July 8, 2024, ASTM notified CPSC that it had approved and 
published ASTM F1967-24. CPSC staff is assessing the revised voluntary 
standard to determine, consistent with section 104(b)(4)(B) of the 
CPSIA, its effect on the safety of consumer products covered by the 
standard. The Commission invites public comment on that question, to 
inform staff's assessment and any subsequent Commission consideration 
of the revisions in ASTM F1967-24.\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ The Commission voted (5-0) to approve this notice.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The currently incorporated voluntary standard (ASTM F1967-19) and 
the revised voluntary standard (ASTM F1967-24) are available for review 
in several ways. A read-only copy of the existing, incorporated 
standard (ASTM F1967-19) is available for viewing, at no cost, on the 
ASTM website at: https://www.astm.org/READINGLIBRARY/. A read-only copy 
of the revised standard (ASTM F1967-24), including red-lined versions 
that identify the changes from the 2019 version to the 2024 version, 
are available, at no cost, on ASTM's website at: https://www.astm.org/CPSC.htm. Interested parties can also download copies of the standards 
by purchasing them from ASTM International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, P.O. 
Box C700, West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959; phone: 610-832-9585; 
https://www.astm.org. Alternatively, interested parties can schedule an 
appointment to inspect copies of the standards at CPSC's Office of the 
Secretary, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, 4330 East West 
Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814, telephone: 301-504-7479.
    Comments must be received by August 1, 2024. Because of the short 
statutory time frame Congress established for the Commission to 
consider revised voluntary standards under section 104(b)(4) of the 
CPSIA, CPSC will not consider comments received after this date.

Alberta E. Mills,
Secretary, Consumer Product Safety Commission.
[FR Doc. 2024-15843 Filed 7-17-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6355-01-P